Batteky plates



V Y (No Model.) 2 Shets-Sheet 1.

(J.J,REED. I MBUHANISM FOR FORMING'BATTERY PLATES.

No. 532,701. Patented Jan. 15, 1895.

(No Model.)

2 Sheets-Sheet 2. Q C. J. REED. V MECHANISM FOR FORMING BATTERY PLATES.

Patented Jan. 15,1895.

anvemboz PATENT QFFICE.

CHARLES J. REED, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO THE REEDELECTRIC COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

MECHANISM FOR FORMING BATTERY-PLATES.

SPECIFIGATIQN forming part of Letters Patent No. 532,701, dated January15, 1895. Application filed September 12, 1894- Serial No. 52 (N011105619 A To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES J. REED, a citizen of the United States,residing at Philadelphia,in the county of Philadelphia and State ofPennsylvania, have made a new and useful Invention in 'Mechanism forForming Battery-Plates, of which the following isa specification.

My invention has for its objects, first, the construction of rolledgrooved electrodes or battery plates with stiffening ribs and connectinglugs or ears in completed form; second, the construction of electrodesor battery plates which shall be entirely symmetrical in form andpossess an equal amount of active surface when prepared or formed;third, the preparation of electrodes or plates possessing all of thefunctions necessarily attributable to the products of the mechanismhereinafter described.

My invention will be fully understood by referringto the accompanying.drawings, in Which I Figure 1 represents a plan view of a pair ofelectrodes or plates as they appear after the lead or equivalentmaterial from which they are formed has been passed through the machineand the forming cylinders or rolls have made one complete revolution.Fig. 2 represents an end view of the mechanism,illustrating in dottedlines a sheet of lead as it is being rolled. Fig. 3 is a verticalsectional view taken through the body of the machine on line 3-3, Fig.2, the shafting and cog-gearing for driving the cylinders or rolls beingshown in elevation. Fig. at is an end view and Fig. 5 an elevationalview of the machine, said figures showing in detail those portions ofthe rolls which cut or trim the ends of the electrodes and theconnecting or contacting lugs or ears.

In the construction of storage battery plates it has been customaryheretofore to prepare the body portion of the plate and afterward toattach the stiffening ribs and the contacting or conducting lugs or earswhich unite the independent plates together. My present invention isdesigned to overcome this difficulty and expense in construction and tomake a plate of this general nature which shall be integral in form.

My invention will be fully understood by referring to the followingdetailed description of the drawings and to the especial features ofnovelty particularly pointed out in the claims at the end of thisspecification.

Referring first to Figs, 2, 3,4 and 5, A and B represent grooved steelcylinders or rolls which are sustained in adjustable journal bearings byaxles S and S upon a rigid frame not shown, said axles being connectedtogether by gear wheels G and G which cause them to rotate at the samespeed under the action of properly applied power. These cylinders orrolls A and B are provided with grooves a a and b b which, however, donot extend entirely around them, said grooves being discontinued overextended fractional portions of the rolls on one side and over limitedfractional portions thereof on the other side, the discontinuationsbeing in each instance in the nature of depressions or spaces having thesame radial distances from the axes of the rolls as the bottoms of thegrooves.

K, K, K K K and K are cutters or knives which are situated indove-tailed or equivalent grooves in the depressions or spaces, seeFigs. 2 and 4, the edges of said knives being slightly below the outerportions of the grooves a a, b b, the location of said knives being suchthat when the rolls advance under the action of the gear wheels G and G,the knives K and K will be in alignment with each other as shown in Fig.2, while under a further advancement the knives K and K will be in likeposition, the knives K and Kt assuming under like conditions the sameposition.

a a are trimming knives or cutters secured in the depression or grooveof the roll A and near the opposite ends thereof by screws 8', s, s, andb b are corresponding trimming knives which are located at the outerends of the like depressions of the roll B, their location upon thatroll being such that the outer edges of the trimming knives a a will actlike shears upon the inner edges of the corresponding trimming knives?)b. V

C C are trimming rings or disks secured by screws 8, s, s, s, to theopposite ends of the roll A and are of such external diameters that whenin position they extend slightly past the too opposite ends of the rollB and thereby act as trimmers for dressing or trimming off the edges ofthe metal as it is rolled forward through the machine.

In Fig.1 is shown a pairof completed plates or electrodes P and I asthey appear after the rolls have made one complete revolution, 0 a beingthe grooved orbody portions thereof, 19', 13 19 p the stiffening ribs atthe opposite ends and L L, L L the lugs or ears which are afterward cutapart by a pair of shears at the medial line 13 p.

I will now describe the mode of operation of the apparatus.

The rolls A and B having been properly adjusted to the thickness it isdesired to roll the grooved electrodes, sheet lead D of the requiredthickness and width is passed between them as shown in Fig. 2, the rollsmoving under the action of properly applied power and the gear wheels Gand G. See Figs. 2 and. 3. As the rolls advance the grooves a a andl) 1) cause the lead to assume the corrugated form shown at c c, Fig. 1,and the first depression or space seen immediately on the left of theknives K and K, Fig. 2, forms the stiffening rib 1), Fig. 1. As therolls advance, therefore, the electrode I" with the grooves ciscompleted and the trimming disks C 0, Figs. 3 and 4, trim off thesurplus lead which extends over either side of the roll B. Finally whenthe rolls reach such a position that the knives K and K assume therelation which now exists between the knives K and K, Fig. 2, thestiffening rib p is formed and the aforesaid knives sever the leadbetween the electrode P' and that portion of the lead sheet whichimmediately follows. As the rolls advance, the trimming knives a oracting like shears against the inner edges of the trimming knives b b,Fig. 5, cut out a blank sheet of lead and leave the lugs or cars L L, LL, Fig. 1, until the third set of knives K K reach a position similar tothat of K and K, Fig. 2, when the blank sheet of lead is again severedby them and the stiff ening rib p of the electrode P formed. A furtheradvancement of the rolls completes the electrode P and finally theknives K and K assume their original position forming the stiffening ribp. In like manner as the rolls advance, the electrodes are made in pairsand as they are forced out of the machine they may be severed at themedial line 19 p by a pair of shears or any analogous instrument.

I do not limit myself to the particular mechanism herein described forforming a completed rolled plate or electrode which shall be integral inall of its parts as I believe I am broadly entitled to claim mechanismfor rolling such completed electrodes, andmy claims are generic as tothis feature. It is also obvious that intermediate discontinuations ofthe grooves a a, b I) might be made in the rolls if desired for thepurpose of making one, or more intermediate stiffening ribs similar tothe end stiffening ribs p p 19 Should such be provided it is of courseobvious that there would be no cutting knives like K K, the function ofthe grooves being to form the intermediate stiffening ribs alone. It isalso obvious that instead of forming the grooves longitudinally in theplates P and I, the rolls might be provided with longitudinal ribs anddepressions which would form the grooves laterally, the intermediatespaces and cutting knives together with the trimming knives being ashereinbefore described and as shown in the drawings. All such structuresI deem as coming wholly within the scope of my claims hereinafter made.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secureby Letters Patent of the United States, is-

1. A machine for forming battery plates from a sheet or strip of metalconsisting of means for rolling grooves in the material, and additionalmeans for forming stiffening ribs at the ends of each plate, incombination with means for cutting out a section of the material betweeneach pair of plates as rolled whereby lugs or ears are made integralwith the plates.

2. A machine for forming a battery electrode or plate by rolling thesame from a sheet or strip of lead, consisting of a pair of groovedrolls provided with corresponding depressions in each roll and one ormore pairs of cutting knives on each roll for severing the completedelectrode from the material and forming stiffening ribs, in combinationwith means for cutting out a section of the material between adjoiningpairs of plates so as to form conducting lugs or cars, substantially asdescribed.

3. A machine for forming a battery electrode or plate by rolling thesame from a sheet or strip of lead, consisting of a pair of groovedrolls having each two depressions extending over fractional parts of theroll, in combination with cuttersor knives for severing the material andforming stiffening ribs, and trimming knives for forming the conductinglugs or cars, substantially as described.

t. A machine for forming a battery electrode or plate by rolling thesame from a sheet or strip of lead, consisting of a pair of rolls havingeach corresponding grooves over a portion of its surface andcorresponding depressions, in combination with cutting and trimmingknives for forming stiffening ribs and the conducting lugs or cars andmeans for trimming the sides or edges of the material as it is rolledforward.

5. A machine for forming a battery electrode or plate by rolling thesame from a sheet or strip of lead, consisting of a pair of rollsprovided each with corresponding grooves over a portion of its surface,corresponding depressions which occupy the remainder of the surface, andpairs of cutting and trimming knives located in said depressions,substantially as described.

6. A pair of rolls provided with grooves for forming two completegrooved electrodes or plates at each revolution, and additional meansfor forming two or more 'stifiening ribs and one or more contacting lugsor ears for each electrode or plate.

7. Mechanism for forming grooved electrodes consisting of a pair ofgrooved rolls protrodes or plates by rolling the same in pairs andsimultaneously. forming lugs or ears for each electrode or plate, incombination with means for trimming the sides or edges of the materialas it it fed forward through the machine.

10. Mechanism for rolling battery electrodes, consisting of a pair ofrolls having grooves over portions of their surfaces only, depressionsover the remainder of the surfaces, severing knives or cutters forsevering the plates from each other and forming stiffening ribs at theends thereof, in combination with additional cutters for forming thecontactingears or lugs,substantially as described. In testimony-whereofI have hereunto subscribed my name this 7th day of September,

CHARLES J. REED. Witnesses:

O. J. KINTNER,

M. M. RoBINsoN.

